The Strain S01E11 Recap: The Third Rail

Zach plays around with a camera, but Eph stops him from looking at the UV lights for his protection. Abraham wonders if its a good idea, Fet isn't sure, but they're about to try. It's kind of a fail. Fet and Eph brainstorm how to get the UV lights to last longer. Fet jokes about creating a UV rave for the Strgoi, but Eph doesn't find it so funny. Someone remove the stick that has implanted itself in his behind. They can't test anything else, for fear of losing more UV lamps. They'll have to test things in the field and hope for the best, which is right up Abraham's alley.

Nora's mom, Mariela tears up Abraham's kitchen looking for an ashtray. She can't remember that its not her house, or that Nora broke it years ago. Abraham gives her one of his ashtrays, and Mariela tells her daughter that she doesn't like Abraham. Nora explains to her mother that they're guests, and apologizes to Abraham, that she's wrong about him, but Abraham doesn't think she is. The ashtray she was looking for is from the hotel where Mariela first went on a date with Nora's father, Zach points out that its good she remembers that.

Gus returns home, but finds no one opening the door for him. The door is unlocked, and the apartment is smelly. The fridge door is open, and Gus finds his brother staring at the soccer game on TV. His brother is infected, and Gus doesn't hesitate to decimate him with a baseball bat. Afterwards he's broken u about it.

Eph looks at a machete. First do no harm is a vow he took, Nora reminds him that things have changed. Eph isn't so sure they have. In years past, a plague or curse would roll through, and people would be unable to stop it until someone like them came through and found the root cause. Eph isn't sure he believes that destroying the master will end everything, but he has too, otherwise he could leave Zach an orphan or worse. He thinks one of them should stay behind, but Nora refuses. She will not stay. There is no plan B, not for Abraham,  not for Fet because they have no one else to think about but themselves. Nora doesn't see an alternative.

Fet readies the truck. Abraham gives Nora a knife. Zach worries about when they will return, he wants to come with them. Eph knows the safest place for them is in Abraham's basement, its a fortress. He puts Zach in charge, before locking the front gates and heading out. Zach listens to some of Abraham's records when Mariel comes asking about her ashtray, he tells her he doesn't have it, but Nora can help her when she comes back. That appeases her for a moment, but as Zach looks at some weapons Mariela asks about her cigarettes. He uses the Nora will help you when she gets back line again.

Chaos is in the streets. Looks like some people have taken the epidemic disaster and used it for a reason for a shopping spree. The master is counting on the looting and chaos to further his plans.

Gus tries to reach his mother with no luck. He tries her at work, telling them that its an emergency,  but she isn't there. Gus hears a thump, and goes to investigate the sound coming from the bedroom closet, prepared for the worse. His mother is in there, and she's sleeping, but clearly infected. Gus cries over seeing his beloved mother in that state.

Zach does some reading in Abraham's crazy books. He hears Mariels crying outside, and goes to check on her. She's crying because they're locked in. She wants the keys to get out, thinking that Nora is in danger. Zach tells her that Nora is in no danger, that she went on her own and will be back. She continues to cry begging for release. Zach asks her if he goes and gets her cigarettes if she'll go downstairs and wait for him. Suddenly calmed she goes inside.

Abraham, Eph, Fet and Nora descend the steps of the subways, down to the strigoi lair. Its dark, dank and smelly like a snake's lair. Fet leads the way, cautioning them to steer clear of the track. Eph stumbles across a wallet, and they begin seeing all of the  articles that defined the people that are likely now changed. Most tragically there's a stuffed bunny among the belongings.

Zach locks up the shop tight, with Mariela inside, before he heads out on his cigarette run. The streets are full of crying people, cars left open. A girls asks if his phone works, and he tells her that it doesn't keeping his head down, and his pace fast.

The foursome hears noises up ahead in the tunnels, they come across a large group of them. They're nesting during the daylight house. Fet thinks that they should kill them while they have the chance, but Abraham doesn't think announcing their presence to the master is a good idea. They turn off their UV lights, and tread lightly through the crowd. Eph thinks he spots Kelly, but it isn't her, and they have to keep moving.

Gus's mother rises. He feels guilt over not being there for his mother, but he doesn't destroy her. He drops the bat and leaves the apartment. Taking an axe off the wall, he prepares for what's ahead. He runs into the landlord, and has no problem chopping his head off, and letting it roll down the stairs.

Fet talks about the tube history, when Eph stops him, he hears something. Fet reasons that they've been hearing that noise the entire time. Eph thinks its different, but Fet says that when a train comes they'll know. The Ground begins to shake, a train is definitely coming. They get against a wall to safety just in the nick of time. Eph gives Fet a hard time about not listening to them. The two engage in a verbal pissing contest before Abraham puts an end to it. They come across a strigoi, but again Abraham cautions them not to attack unless they have to. The creature fries itself.

Zach made it to the store. He checks to make sure the clerk is dead dead before spotting the cigarettes. A couple comes in and Zach goes to hide. He crawls down a hatch, and finds a strigoi. As he tries to inch back up the ramp he drops his moms phone, and has to retrieve it. The strigoi is gone, and Zach scurries back through the door. He runs right into the young male, and the guy notices someone else is there. When he goes to investigate she gets him, and of course his girlfriend rushes into help and finds herself killed as well. Zach runs back towards the front, and runs headlong into Gus, who hears the strigoi attacking the couple. He sends the boy off, as he goes to take care of the problem, axe in hand. Zach grabs the cigarettes and makes a run for the door.

They continue down the tunnel, neon blood, and strigoi noises lead them to a dead end. Eph discovers a hole, just small enough to crawl though. It's either a trap, or the way they all went. Armed with a UV light and machete Eph crawls through. He yells an all clear, but before any of the others can begin the crawl the strigoi awaken and close in. Abraham takes to the tunnel, he calls to Eph for help, but Eph hears Kelly's voice pleading to him for help, and he goes towards the sound. Nora and Fet hear Abraham's call, and Fet knows the light won't hold them for long. He sends Nora into the tunnel and faces down the strigoi alone. Nora makes it through quickly, and Fet tries to do the same, but he's a bigger man and has a harder time. A strigoi closes in from behind as Fet pushes through. He and Nora kill the tunnel strigoi, but Eph and Abraham are no where to be found.

Eph follows the sound of Kelly's voice to the box. He opens it up but she's not inside. Strigoi surround him, and he yells at them for Kelly. The master drops down onto Eph, and disarms him quickly. He warns him that he has taken everything from Abraham and he will do the same to him. Before he can hit Eph with a throat stinger, Abraham arrives, sword drawn. The master disables him with some sonic screeching and turns his focus back on Eph. Fet and Nora arrive, throwing Fet's light ball into action. The strobe lights take out the younger strigoi, but the Master is able to get away.

Zach returns home to find Mariela, zoned out for a moment. She's happy to see him back and with her cigarettes. It brings tears to her eyes. She watches as Zach practices his knife skills, which brings on different kinds of tears.

The master was lost, they had him, and he got away, but the light ball worked. Eph tells them that he heard Kelly's voice, she was calling out to him. Fet berates Eph for running off, they were chasing him instead of hunting the master. Abraham is pissed that Fet wasted the light ball. He takes his anger out on the beautiful box that he carved by hand. Abraham rushes off in the direction the master went, with the others following. They find another dead end. Eph wants to stop and regroup, but Abraham wants to forge ahead. With the UV light they can see where the master went. They stop Abraham from rushing headlong into the larger nest, its far too big for them to run through.


The Strain is on Sundays at 10PM ET/PT on FX.